Exercise or diet: What's the best way to curb your appetite?

Forget skipping meals as new research says exercise is the secret to eating less

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Scientists from Loughborough University in the UK discovered that going for a light jog could be answer to controlling your hunger.

As part of the study, researchers selected 12 women and analysed their hormonal, psychological and behavioural responses to diet and exercise.

For the first trial, each woman’s diet was restricted by 3,500 kJs over a nine hour period, followed by a buffet meal.

The next phase involved each woman doing a 90-minute treadmill run at a moderate pace, again followed by a buffet later that day.

In both cases the women were told they could eat as much as they liked and were unaware they were being monitored during the meal.

The findings revealed that when women were put on a diet they ate up to a third more than when they created a similar energy deficit through exercise.

The researchers noted that when women denied themselves food, levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin increased while levels of a hunger-suppressing hormone called peptide YY decreased.

Dr David Stensel, a specialist in exercise metabolism in Loughborough’s School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, said the findings contradict previous studies suggesting exercise makes people - in particular women - eat more.

“Our findings provide a valuable contribution to the diet and exercise debate,” he said. “We've shown that exercise does not make you hungrier or encourage you to eat more - at least not in the hours immediately following it.”

According to Stensel, the next step is to see whether this benefit continues beyond the first day of exercise. Want to get moving? Here's how to become a jogger and actually enjoy it, or tips to get you up and running in the morning.